Beaded Beads...

...are wonderful! When you need a quick bead fix and want to feel as though you've achieved something, this is the way to go. I call it "component beading" - making lots of components that eventually get together to organise themselves into an overal piece.

These are my Hour Glass beaded beads that have lots of potential to be realised, when I get the time to kick them into shape!

Supposed to be beading, but...

I've got all the household chores done (cleaning, washing, shopping, washed cars...) and so the rest of the day is mine. I've had an hour sat in the garden but thought I better have a break from the sun. I have actually been working on beading in that I've, once again, been tweaking the instructions for my next article. Anyway, as usual I've got diverted by the computer so thought I'd write a quick blog.

I've made a second necklace for Beadwork and took the opportunity to check that the instructions made sense - they do to me, so hopefully they will to everyone else! Thankfully, my tester will rework the piece over the next few weeks. The only problem is, she's not keen on Fireline thread (much prefering KO or nymo), but as Swarovski crystals are once again involved she's gonna have to grin and bear it! I'm sure she will. Personally, I find Fireline a godsend - it's thin, flexible and ultra tough stuff, especially where crystals are involved, so if you've not given it a go yet you really should bite the bullet and invest in a reel. There are a few drawbacks with it, however - it's pricey, only comes in smoke and clear (although it can be coloured with permanent felt marker pens) and the tail has an anoying habit of knotting around the working thread.

And this is a picture of Archie, my Scottie, enjoying himself in the garden this morning!

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Colour dilema

Designing a piece is hard enough, but choosing bead colours is almost as difficult. I usually pick a few pots of beads out in what I think will work, only to weave a handful of the little dears and find out that the colours are arguing amongst themselves and simply refuse to get along. What is it with beads and colour that makes them so tricky at times? All that said, I've just been looking at Beverly Ash Gilbert's wonderful site that simple oozes inspiration for colour and it's really inspired me.

My obsession with triangles and geometric shapes continues and this necklace is a prime example of me not being able to make a colour decision. In the end, I simply decided I couldn't decide so went for one of each. What the heck.

Work in progress (done!)

Bead & Button emailed me a proof of my article this week - I can't wait to see it in the magazine. I think it's due out round about August time, so not long to wait.

Here's a taster...

Every time I do an article I find ways to improve my "system". However, everything failed today when the document I had spent 4 hours on decided to semi-corrupt - I say "semi", because it showed jibberish one second (a Word document) and when I opened it up the next time (after a major panic) it was OK. I think hubby breathed a bigger sigh of relief than me, after all, he would have to live with me if the work had been lost!

Books to look forward to

There seem to have been some brilliant beading books published this year by some of the top designers in the world - first up was Laura McCabe's stunning Creating Crystal Jewelry with Swarovski which was hotly followed by Diane Fiztgerald's Shaped Beadwork book.

These two are sitting pretty on my beading book shelf and and will shortly be joined by a couple more titles when they are eventually released one by Rachel Nelson-Smith and the other by Marcia DeCosta:

I can't wait!

Not much beading been done this week as we've been away for a couple of days - just to York for our wedding anniversary (21 years, where have they gone). We caught a couple of films - Star Trek (yes, I know, but I did enjoy it!) and Angels and Demons which thankfully I managed to follow admirably.

Beading is happening, but I'm busy re-working a necklace and writing up the instructions for it for Beadwork; my Bead & Button article will be finished this weekend and in the post as soon as my toggle fasteners arrive to finish the pieces, so that's one out the way. Phew.

Swarovski bicones to be replace by Xilion shape

I love Swarovskis and adore their bicones - they feature in so many things I do these days in one way, shape or form - but it is shortly going to be replaced.

The new bead - the Xilion cut (reference 5328) - will over the coming months replace the 5301 bicone bead. From what I've read, the Xilion has alternating size facets and more cuts which will give better light reflection and it also seems it will be a littler rounder around the middle than the standard bicone. So far as I understand it, all the bicone shapes are to be replaced with the exception of the 2.5mm.

If you can't bear to be without the traditional bicone, hurry and buy them now as once the transition period has gone (June to September this year) once stocks run out you won't be able to get the current shape any more...apparently.

Changed my mind!

My work in progress - a small pot vase covered in beads - has resurfaced. I got some amethyst rivolis a couple of weeks ago with the intention of embellishing the vase with these and other bits and bobs. I didn't like my first choice of colours (posted about 10 days ago) and so the lovely rivoli in purples and reds has been unpicked.

Now, I've gone totally OTT and opted for in your face orange with purple and fuchsia and I lurv the combo and how the two rivolis have turned out. Outrageous and startling was what I had in mind and I think I'm close! You know when something's right and to me, right now for this particular piece of beading, it's right. Others might not think so!

Yeah! More published work!

Hot on the heels of having my last piece accepted for publication in Bead & Button magazine, I've now just heard back from Beadwork magazine that they like a necklace I submitted to them for consideration! Wowwee, I'm on a roll. Both will be out in early 2010 (seems a lifetime away!).

Now I REALLY need to get myself into gear as I've three months to finish them both. The B&B one is virtually done, my trusted tester having just this week worked my instructions without a hitch, so today I shall be knuckling down and trying to finish that one off. After that, it will be all systems go for the Beadwork article.

I've learnt over the years to finish a piece, write the instructions to near completion and only then submit the work - in the early days, I simply had an idea (no piece or picture was usually required), offered the idea to the magazine I wrote for and then got a reply with a six week deadline for everything! It was always a panic and so now I feel better prepared, but still panic like mad!

Thankfully, my project for the UK's Bead magazine is now with them and so most the hard work has been done.

Phew.

Right Angle Weave

For years I've avoided right angle weave with seed beads. By this, I mean each "wall" of the cell consisting of one size 11 seed bead (ie, 4 seed beads making one cell). Then I came across Marcia DeCoster's project in the lates issue of Beadwork (April/May 2009) and simply had to have a go at RAW (again). And blow me down, it is actually working! I think my problem has been in looking for perfection in how the beads lay and expecting every one to be at exactly 90 degrees to its neighbour. Having looked at close ups of other people's work, I realise that ain't gonna happen and perhaps, finally, I can live with it.

Here's one of the layers of RAW and I will eventually let you see how the finished square of RAW has come along. Not very exciting I admit (and the colours are a bit dodgy to photograpy), but to me this is definitely progress!

More on St Petersburg Stitch

I've been trying out different ideas with St Petersburg stitch for the last few weeks and have just begun to realise how versatile it is. Tension is vitally important (isn't it always in beading?!) and the variation of finishes that can be achieved by using different bead types has really been worth exploring.

The sample photos (white beads) show firstly a single row then a double row of the stitch worked in size 11 seeds. It drapes well, but wasn't quite the finish I was looking for so I gave some matte size 11 seeds a whirl (3 rows this time). Better, but still not right and the daggers I had in my stash were limiting the colour schemes.


I then tried using some size 10 cylinders (delicas) and fitted some bicones down the middle - this was more what I was looking for, but I didn't like the way the cylinders were jostling against each other because of their squareness.

Finally, I've tried some size 8 seed beads with a matte finish and this seems to be working. No piccies yet as it's still a work in progress, but hopefully soon...

I love peyote, but right now St Petersburg is top of my favorite list!

St Petersburg Stitch

Being a peyote addict, I've explored most possibilities of this stitch and got to know it "right well", so I thought it high time I got to know some other stitches equally well.

I tried St Petersburg stich the first time a few years ago and whilst I liked it, at the time I didn't see much potential to develop it - until now! For the past week, all I've done is play with variations of the stitch and it's now (well, until another one comes along!) my favourite stitch. I've tried it with 11s, 8s, delica 10s, 2mm bugles and double delicas so far and there's loads more experimentation to come. Photos to follow...

Work in Progress...

The weather's been wet and windy today so as there has been no chance of getting in the garden, out for a walk or out on the motorbike, it's been a beading day (well of sorts). No proper beading, but a bit of sorting and I've spent a good few hours writing up instructions.

I'm not terribly disciplined when it comes to writing and drawing diagrams for designs as I'm easily distracted, so tend to break it down to 2-3 hour sessions. Unfortunately, this means I tend to lose where I am between sessions and some re-capping is always involved, but this time my breaks have only been a few days so I've got on reasonably well. I've still a way to go for the 2 designs I'm working on, but at least things are starting to gel.

I've also taken a picture of some work in progress - this is my "thoughtless" piece, something I can pick up and put down without losing where I am; it's also good to have on hand when I have beader's block or no time to sort beads for a new project. This is a terracotta pot about 3inches tall that I've pained and started to cover with beads (size 11 seeds working peyote). Eventually I hope to attach woven flowers, leaves and other bits and bobs, so hopefully in a few months time a finished piece might just be on the blog!

Bedtime Reading

My bookshelf is full of bead books, but I've become particularly fussy about what books I buy these days. They have to inspire, tempt and push me beyond my usual boundaries and this year has seen two complete stunners emerge from two of the worlds' best beaders (I dare anyone to argue...) - Laura McCabe's Creating Crystal Jewelry with Swarovski and my most recent and happy arrival, Diane Fitzgerald's Shaped Beadwork. If you have pennies to spend, go get both these books now.

I suppose I'm biased - I love dimensional work and I love beading with Swarovski, so these two books would be at the top of my Desert Island Books list hands down.

Diamond Windows

Here are my Diamond Windows bracelets which appear as a project in the current issue of the UK's Bead magazine (issue 14). It's always a buzz when you see your work published, but I was more than chuffed when I saw them dazzling on the cover of the magazine! These little diamond shapes have taken me on a voyage of discovery exploring geometric designs (triangles and squares being the latest) - it's great when you have a "what if...?" moment in beading, and these bracelets were the start of many of those.

Red Resolution

I thought it time this blog had some eye candy, so here goes...

First up is Red Resolution. I avoid(ed) beading with certain colours, red and orange being two of them, so my 2008 New Year's Resolution was to bead with red and orange - this is the result. Some of the rivolis have been inspired by the brilliant Laura McCabe's designs. Now, I love working with orange and red!

This is one of those long winded projects and I guess it took nearly 40 hours to make, but worth every minute! I keep threatening to do another in greens and oranges...